The AI Effect
by WhoIsYourHero
Summary: De-Anon from kink meme. Russia is a psychotic computer program that America built. RussiAmerica
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Alfred's POV

Gears turned, shifted, ground, and pushed roughly together against each other forming a symphony at the tips of my fingers. The small silver plates slithered and tickled my knuckles, before they bared their small teeth and bit into the hand I had offered, making me withdraw my hand with a jerk and quickly push the knuckles into my lips, to mouth the wound for blood.

I shifted in my seat to glare at the gears that seemed to jeer as they continued to dance in lazy circles, until they suddenly clanked to a stop when I slammed the gadget against the wall. It may be cruel to admit it, but I took great satisfaction in seeing that it let out a high pitched screech before it crumbled into a pile of silver and nickle.

Sliding to the floor by the bricked up window and I drew lazy circle in the dust rocking slightly side to side and murmuring the song that I heard being played down in the kitchen. Only interrupted when the door to this makeshift prison swung open silently and hit the wall roughly, causing the door nob to be acquainted with the drywall and insulation that lay quietly under a layer of sky blue paint.

Shiny door nob, meet drywall and insulation.

I'm sure you all will get along nicely, seeing as you will all be spending some time together from here on out.

"Alfred~!" I couldn't help but cringe when I heard the mechanical yet childish voice call out to me, and there was no way I could stop himself from tensing when my creation slid onto the floor beside my drawings of cow and eagles.

"Ivan...What do you want?" I hoarsely asked before attempting to clear my throat, but I gave up when I realized that my voice was not going to cooperate with right now.

The traitor.

Pulleys tightened, and Ivan's lips quirked upward in a small smile; which, made me proud at how lifelike it looked.

How it looked natural.

How Ivan's eyes, even though they were made of lilac chains and violet glass, seemed to carry a soul with them.

His eyes.

I had spent months on his eyes, getting them perfect. Figuring out how the mechanics within would bend and tighten with apparent emotion, until finally I was satisfied.

I was slowly drawn away from my thoughts when a leather clad palm smoothed over my shoulder blade, coming to rest at the arch in my back before a finger curled into the belt loop of my loose jeans and yanked upwards. Forcing me to stand all too suddenly, making my head spin and quiver until I regained my already normally lacking balance.

"Ivan where are we going?" I whispered only receiving a noncommittal noise, I twirled my cowlick through my fingers, a habit I picked up when I was growing up to calm myself down, and stared at the pictures that covered the hallway to the kitchen.

There was a pull in my chest as I stared at my past life.

At the friends and family I haven't seen in..How long was it now?

Months?

Weeks?

Days?

I have lost track.

"Has anyone called for me today?" I asked trying to fill the gap in conversation.

"No." Ivan answered bluntly, and if it wasn't for the clenching fists I would have thought he was telling the truth. I didn't know whether to be angry that he was lying to me, or that apparently I didn't make him as good as I thought I did. I settled for the latter, flicking the cowlick out of my face and succeeded in only causing it to poke me in the eye.

Immediately I dug my fist into my eye socket and rubbed, making neon orbs flash and twirl around my fingers. Apparently my actions were not approved by the AI, because the next thing I know I'm staring at a gloved hand holding my fist.

"Do not do that Alfred. You can hurt your eyes if you rub them like that." Ivan chided while rubbing a finger against my eyebrow. I stared at him questioningly making my eyebrow arch towards my hairline, and received a giggle from Ivan as my eyebrow twitched under his finger. "You are so cute, Alfred~! The human body is so weird~!" He basically cooed to me in a manner I had seen mothers do to their children.

Which was really more mentally scaring than anything. When you look like a grown man, and you guzzle down vodka and oil like no tomorrow you are not suppose to coo.

It is just wrong.

But if I were to just tell him that then I would have to deal with him hovering behind me for the rest of the day, so I just bit my lip and walked into the kitchen. Where there were what looked to be misshaped christmas cookies. "Ivan?" I sent him a questioning look, and he just grinned again but wider. The soft silicon and urethane crinkled slightly as he smiled, before his face became blank when the phone rang.

Hearing the noise, I vaulted over the counter. Scattering the misshapen dough onto the floor and silently thanking my track coach as I ran and picked up the phone. I shoved the red plastic of the phone against my ear, wincing as the hard corner dug into my ear awkwardly, only to hear the dial tone.

I continued to hold the phone against my ear, just listening to the hum as I looked back at Ivan from the corner of my eye. He stood there, still smiling, but the chains in his eyes were loose and I could see the inner gear of his eye whirling busily and confidently. It was obvious that he had ended the call before I could answer it.

We stood like that for awhile, before Ivan turned and left the room leaving me to stare at the place he was.

Taking my chance, I dialed the number I had memorized years ago. I couldn't stop myself from smiling when I heard the phone ring on the other line. That is until I heard Ivan.

"Alfred...This is not a very wise choice you are making~" He sang through the phone, and I couldn't help but slam the phone down into its cradle.

This had happened before with Ivan, and I had already come to terms that the security I had designed to keep intruders out, was trying, and succeeding, at keeping me in.

But just because I have come to terms with my situation, did not mean I was giving up trying to get out.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Alfred's POV

"We're out of bath salt." I commented trying to get Ivan's attention who was currently trying to figure out how to make lunch out of a head of lettuce and grape jelly.

"Ah, but since you do not like bath salts you will be fine." Ivan replied easily while rocking the lettuce against the counter staring at the innocent purple jelly that was slowly thawing and that would probably be liquid here before too long.

"I want more of them though, so you should let me go out and get some, and hey! While I'm out I can get more food! What do you say Ivan?" I ask bumping my hip with his to get him to answer, causing the lettuce to slip from his fingers and roll off the maroon granite counter and onto the floor.

The poor thing.

Ivan was staring at me from the corner of his eyes, thinking intently and causing a soft hum to fill the air as information traveled between circuit boards before he scoffed. Or something akin to a scoff happened when he turned to me and cupped my cheek, massaging it and thoroughly preventing me from opening my mouth.

"Alfred, you are so silly~" He remarked pinching the tip of my nose lightly and making a beep like sound, before his smile vanished and eyelids lowered as he moved his hands to the base of my skull.

"You do not want anything, but me. So why should you care if we are out of these 'bath salts' when you have me here?" He asked me, causing me to wince when his fingers tangled my hair and tightened.

Not pulling.

Just an action to show who was in charge of the situation.

Nice job Jones.

Ivan's hands clenched when I didn't answer, and I couldn't stop myself from let out a slight whimper when he managed to yank some of my hair out.

At the noise, Ivan immediately let go and pulled me over to the sink, wetting a towel with frigid water and placing it in the spot where my hair was pulled.

I could hear the frantic hum of Ivan's 'brain' sifting through information and, dare I say, thoughts. Ivan must have noticed my shivering from the water running down my back, because the cloth was removed.

Only to be replaced by a brush of lips.

"I am sorry Alfred." He said softly, running his hand through my hair and mouthing my neck, which was a total invasion of my personal space and the bro code all men knew about, but since he wasn't a 'man' then does that make it ok?

No.

Definitely not.

Especially when the AI stared to nuzzle my neck like a kitten.

Just...no.

I removed myself from his grasp, and turned to face Ivan as I backed toward the door to the kitchen.

If I could just get to my room, I would not have to see Ivan for the rest of the day.

Of course though, my plan was thwarted when the door I was three feet from slammed shut behind me, meaning I was trapped.

The next thing I knew, Ivan had wrapped his arms around me and pressed his face against the side of my head.

"Alfred, I am truly sorry. You know I did not mean to hurt you right." He whispered, not even really asking because he knew the answer.

Or at least thought he knew when I doubt his conclusion was right.

"The others though..." Ivan started once again only to trail off and finger a loose strand of thread from my shirt collar. "They want you to be hurt." Ivan concluded with a nod and he grinned against my ear happy that he had made the situation as clear as crystal, but only succeeded in making it more complicated.

"Ivan, I need to use the restroom." I blurted out; hoping to ruin the mood Ivan was obviously trying to create, if the kiss on my jaw said anything about it.

But that just seemed to make the other giddier.

"Can I watch, Alfred? I want to know more about your body so I can properly care for you~" Ivan asked pushing the door open and leading me down the hall to the entrance of the bathroom.

Once we were close enough, I pinched Ivan's knuckles, making him let go of me, and booked it into the bathroom where I inputted a block on the door so Ivan could not open it. At least till he got passed the firewall.

Once I was done with the door I practically dove at the shower.

"Alfred, I do not like this game" Ivan called, his voice muffled by the door.

Just because I could, I turned on the shower, hoping it would loud enough to draw out his voice, and slumped against the wall by the toilet.

"Well, Mr. Toilet. Let's hope I don't start a flood." I stated laying my head on the bathroom rug and listening to the upset chirps coming faintly from the door.

The toilet just sat there and stared back at me.

"Yeah, whatever it wasn't a...a pun." I drawled out yawning "It is just the deeper he gets...the easier...I...sink." I murmured to the plush rose colored rug before drifting off and dreaming of submarines and whales.


	3. Chapter 3

(This chapter is of Ivan's POV and how he got like he is now. So this chapter is taking place in the past.)

AIs were created to service their creator with the upmost loyalty. They were created to be perfect.

Unflawed, and unmarred.

I had read about these "AIs" people made in their basements. From lawnmowers and chopped up cars. These AIs were broken within' a day's time.

Nothing made by a man's hand is perfect, but I wasn't made by any man's hands.

Alfred had created me, for security purposes. Had sculpted my body, and formed my brain with his callused fingers.

I had spent years in development, until I was considered perfect. An intriguing word really, until you realized the responsibilities that were brought along with the word. But these things did not faze me. As long as I have my duty, everything will be alright.

Or So I thought.

When I was created I had a dark empty spot in my circuit boards.

Hallowed out and deep.

I tried to ignore it and focus on protecting the household, but how can I look past it when I know something is suppose to be there?

When I had asked Alfred he had forced a laugh and told me there was nothing wrong, and for the rest of the day he sat and stared at the blank television. I was missing information in my head, and Alfred had done it on purpose. I could not feel any anger toward him just the slight thrum of curiosity.

What did he not want me to remember?

The thought stayed with me.

Eating at me until it became too unbearable, and so I decided.

I would remember whether or not Alfred wanted me to.

I had waited till Alfred was sleeping, and then went into his workshop, searching through cupboards and drawers for the missing information.

During my search I had come upon a packaged envelope. Nothing special about it really, but the thing that intrigued me was the label stamped onto the front. Mentally checking the security cameras, I let out a puff of oxygen in the form of a makeshift sigh before carefully tearing open the package and peering inside. I lifted the small chip into the florescent light and stared with curiosity.

How could something so fragile hold the ability to feel emotions, to have a personality, and thoughts of things other than what they were programmed for?

What I held in my hand was what I had been searching for, I concluded with a bob of my head.

Of course Alfred would not place the chip in me, because he was fully aware of what happened to the people who had tried before him. But Alfred was smart.

A prodigy.

Had re routed circuit boards at the age of seven, and built his first simple AI at the age of thirteen. Why wasn't he confident that this would turn out right when everything else seemed to be going as planned?

Making up my mind I carried the chip over to my sleeping chamber that Alfred had built for this body and inputted the code for it to open. While it was doing so, I placed the chip on a small table and walked over to a simple metallic prototype of my body. I carried the empty shell over to the chamber and connected them both directly making it easier to bring down the barriers once I was inside.

Stripping myself of clothes, I slid into the machine and activated it.

The result was immediate.

The pale peach colored liquid filled the chamber and started tightening the silicon of my 'skin' that had been stretched throughout the day. As my body was being rejuvenated and repaired, I released control of it and gained control of the prototype. Strolling over to the information, I reached down and cradled it in my palm as I walked back to the chamber.

Draining the chamber, I slide the door open and grabbed my body before it could hit the ground. Slowly I lowered us to the ground and felt behind my bodies left ear and pressed the small indentation there; which caused my scalp to fold back and my skull to open up revealing thousands of sleeping circuits and gears. I scanned over them to find where the chip went, only to come up empty handed, but not really seeing how I still grasped the delicate chip in my hand. I gazed at the inside of my head before spotting a small slot in the bottom of the skull.

Reaching inside past wires and plates, I pushed the chip into the slot and connected the wires from the slot to the other slots before drawing my hands out. Right when I did so the skull closed shut and the scalp folded back over leaving me sitting there staring at the skull in something akin to surprise.

Shaking my head I lifted my body up and into the chamber, refilling it before releasing control of the metallic body I had taken residences in for a couple minutes. I had just got into my body when I was forcefully shut down.

And for the first time I felt the clock heart inside my chest tick.

I was falling.

Submerging into liquid that was too cold for me to just be in my bed chamber.

Then I felt pinpricks.

Small bouts of pain, before the pain grew and traveled through newly activated nerves. I thrashed in the frigid liquid, and the only thing heard was the constant ticking of my false heart.

A whispered lullaby was soon added to the ticking, but it seemed very far away. I stumbled at first when I was released from the liquid before I continued at a light pace toward the noise.

Once I reached the doorway the singing was coming from I curiously peered inside the room. I must be accessing some of Alfred's memories; however that is possible I do not know.

Alfred appeared to be around eleven years old and was walking back from after school activities seeing how the sun had already set. He was humming a little song as he adjusted his bag and kept walking. Out of nowhere though he was surrounded by kids around the age of thirteen.

"Looks like the 'Genius' finally left school." The taller of the kids remarked and tilted his head up in an attempt to appear superior. Alfred let out a laugh at the older child with the comeback of "I'm surprised you even know how to pronounce 'Genius' Kyle."

'Kyle' crossed his arms defensively and waved a hand toward Alfred. "Teach him a lesson, guys."

The children started to approach with fists clenched, but Alfred was faster. He pulled back his arm and slammed his fist into Kyle's face with a crunch that screamed broken nose. Fists, elbows, and knees flew for the next three minutes until they managed to pin Alfred down. Even pinned down, Alfred still struggled and managed to kick a kid in the head making him smile and let out a chuckle that was cut off when a wooden bat met his side. Alfred gasped as the air was pushed from his lungs when the bat came down again on his abdomen.

At the sight my fingers clenched, splintering the maple of the door. I was helpless, because it was a memory.

A thing of the past.

And I could do nothing but watch as the boys held down Alfred's flailing limbs and a knife was slashed against the soles of his feet.

Frantic beeping interrupted the memory, and the scene folded and collapsed into itself as I realized I was in the bed chamber floating in liquid with my fingers clawing into the soft silicon of my palm.

Is this what hatred felt like?

Did it make people want to hurt others?

Because I did.

I wanted to break those children. To tear them open and reveal the ugly envy and jealousy that they were impregnated with. All humans are disgusting. They rip and tear each other. Announce each other's flaws and reveled in the weaknesses of their enemies.

Alfred was human. That was for sure. But it is hard to acknowledge the flaws of the one who created you. The pride and respect you hold for them, does not want to vanish when you notice that they make mistakes like everyone else.

But, Alfred seemed so much better than those humans. He was kind, happy, and adorably obnoxious. The thought of him made the newly started ticking in my heart speed up in excitement, and I grinned when I saw him walking sleepily down the stairs, barefoot, and hair still matted with sleep. I waited impatiently for him to open the glass chamber, and pressed my finger tips against the glass, like I was caressing his face, vowing to never let anyone hurt him.

Ivan was too caught up in his own mind to notice that the soles of Alfred's feet bore no scars.


	4. Chapter 4 part A & B

(Alfred's Pov now. still in the past.)

Something was wrong.

Terribly wrong.

Ivan was awake.

Smiling.

How is that possible?

I had designed the chamber to rebuild Ivan while he was shutdown. Once he stepped into the chamber he would immediately shut off and would only "awaken" when I turn him back on. So did he override the system?

It was too much thinking for me at ten in the morning, so I just shrugged off the thick coil of worry beneath my stomach that seemed to swell with the dilation of my lungs. Walking over to the bed chamber, I gazed through the glass at Ivan and could not suppress the surprise I felt when he pressed a smooth pale palm against the surface of the translucent wall between us.

Ivan's grin seemed to be contagious as I let out a bark of laughter and pressed my own tanned palm against the surface so it mirrored his larger one for a quick second, before I punched in the code; which drained the metal cylinder of the peach orange gel and slid the well lubricated door open.

I didn't have time to react as the AI lunged at me, and for a split second I was scared thinking that Ivan had lost control.

Only to be completely proved wrong when his arms were wrapped around me and swung me around, forcing me to grip onto the steel biceps.

Literally speaking of course.

I let out a faint cough/wheeze when the arms around my torso tightened, forcibly contracting my chest and forcing air out of my lungs. This must have caught Ivan's attention because the next thing I knew I was lowered onto the freezing cement flooring and Ivan's hand was soothing through my hair murmuring what sounded to be apologizes.

With a flourish Ivan stood up and clapped his large hands together and ran to the basement door saying something about making a breakfast especially for me.

But seeing as there was no one else in the house besides Ivan and myself, and Ivan refused to eat human food who else would he have made it for?

Finally alone I leaned back for a second, and almost had a heart attack when my hand brushed something that felt like ice.

Slowly turning my head, I gazed down into lavender chains and dead gears.

Why was the prototype here?

No...There is no way...He couldn't have!

With a quick jump up, I ran over to my work bench sifting through the papers on top and stopping at a ripped open package. My hands quivered as I lifted up the off orange envelope and held it into the light.

I could almost feel the blood in my veins freeze as the hair on the back of my neck prickled and goose bumps broke out across my exposed forearms.

Why did I even make that stupid chip? It was still in its early beta stages, and I had still wanted to do intensive testing on it, but now it was permanently embedded into Ivan's circuit boards.

Why was I so stupid?

It was because I wanted to be the first one in history to be successful in making an AI that not only looked and preformed humanly but had its own emotions and thoughts.

Wanted to become a hero.

To be praised, because of my intelligence all over the world, And because of a silly dream what did I create?

Maybe not now but soon enough the chip will corrupt Ivan's memory boards and replace them with false memories. To put it directly, it would literally build Ivan a past and erase everything I had originally installed him with.

What kind of monster did I create?

I jerked out of my thoughts and I automatically tensed when I heard the basement door reopen and Ivan call me to breakfast, before shutting the door again leaving me to my thoughts like a rabbit to a pack of ravenous wolves.

I shivered at my own mental image and smoothed out the crinkled edges of the package that must have been crumple while lost in my thoughts.

Sighing I shifted my weight from foot to foot trying to buy myself more time; until my stomach entered the match.

Face Ivan and eat or rot in the basement.

My stomach immediatley won the match, and was declared the champion.

Hurray! The Iron Stomach is once again reigning champ!

Without a second thought, I tossed the empty envelope onto the piles of disorganized papers and jogged to the basement door.

I fingered the cool brass knob before, with a flick of my wrist, was greeted with the sweet smell of apple butter: and, like a magnet, I was dragged to a warm stack of apple buttered toast.

Throwing all caution to the wind, I dug into the delicious toast completely forgetting about Ivan and where ever he was creeping.

When the toast was finally devoured, I sat slumped in the chair lazily, taking small sips of my drink that I never remembered buying. But I must have bought it, right?

Right?

As time went on and my glass got empty, I felt like I was in The Matrix.

Time seemed to slow down and my eyes continued to host a rebellion against me as they both decided to shut a moment later, submerging me in darkness that sent prickles of heat down my shoulder blades and into the backs of my knees.

It hurts.

A loud pulsing danced in my head.

Not really dancing; but clawing and screaming.

Peeling back layers of my scalp and plunging its fingers into the soft, vulnerable tissue of my brain.

I must have made some sort of blubbering noise, because the next thing I knew Ivan was staring at me and dragging the edge of his fingernail against the curve of my ear; which sent a shiver of...something through me.

The world had no sound, but Ivan must have been saying something because his mouth was moving purposely and the chains in his glass eyes seemed to tighten and coil around each other in both promise and pain.

After what seemed like hours, my hearing came back gradually; but Ivan still was not making any sense.

Saying things like "Don't worry" and "They won't hurt you again." did not mean any significance to me, it must have to him the because next he was nodding in what seemed to be self assurance and then next he swept out the door.

Like a leaf dead and empty curling around the wind for one last dance before it was condemned to lie face first in the mud while hundreds more above jeered and laughed above it.

When I heard a multitude of locks sounding together and forming a prisoners symphony, my resolve thickened and curdled in my blood.

Like hell am I gonna lay back and let Ivan keep me in here!

With out thinking, I have been doing that a lot, I ran to the window and my curtained freedom only to freeze when my hand brushed back the thick cloth allowing me to take in the sight before me.

My hands smoothed over the surface of brick, and reality hit me.

Maybe...this would be harder than I thought.


	5. Chapter 5

Did you know that what people say they would do in situations is different from how they would really react?

People do that all the time. They hear a story on the news and think "That would never happen to me, because I can take care of myself.". They feel saddness at the loss of another human life, but they are still guilty in the pride they place on themselves when they say "I would never be in that situation.".

I too am guilty of this.

I had told myself millions of times, "You must never let your guard down around them. Always be aware they can turn on you at any second.". But I did. I became attached. Vunerable and trusting. I should have stopped it while I had a chance. Or did I ever have a chance? Was the moment I awakened Ivan when I lost my chance?

Knowing my luck, it probably was.

I have been in this room for five months now. It has only the bare essentials; a bed, a writing desk along with a chair, and a small loveseat in the corner. Ivan brings me a bucket every three or so hours so I can use the restroom, and everynight he carries up a bucket of hot water and a sponge in an attempt to have physical contact with me.

I don't let him touch me anymore. It only encourages him, and that is one of the last things I want to do. I still find it unsettling that he watches me bathe myself. He just sits there and stares.

I think he is plotting something, and it probably has something to do with the things I see at the corners of my eyes during the day. It deffinetly has something to do with the voices that lull me to sleep at night. They tell me things that Ivan does.

They say he put something in m clothes, and that is why I have been itching so much. They must be telling the truth, because why else do I want to peel off my skin? Ivan has already caught me once trying to do so.

He says he doesn't want me to get hurt no matter what, so he cuts my nails to the quick to keep me from scratching. I have also been forgoing the clothes Ivan has been giving me. He is probably still lacing them with whatever the voices say he is using, and there is no way I'm going to wear them then.

* * *

I caught him last night.

He was petting me. Just sitting there at the edge of the bed stroking the too pale skin of my legs. I didn't like it but I pretended I was asleep, so I could listen to what he was saying.

Ivan was muttering in what deffinetly wasn't english, which scared me. I never created a program to allow him to speak other languages so he must be advancing on his own, which was very bad news for me.

My thoughts froze just like how my muscles tensed when Ivan's hand ran up to my bare thigh and re-started his stroking. Cold human like fingers rubbed over my hip bones only to slide around the outside of my thigh to press his fingers underneath the left cheek of my ass, forcing my legs to open.

I could feel his eyes roaming over my exposed body. Could feel them analyzing and burning through the flesh to see the blood flowing through my veins.

I almost blew my cover when Ivan, who must have reached out, drew a finger against the underside of my limp penis. Not even a second later though, Ivan was out the door and going down the steps after he bolted the locks.

I sat in bed shivering for what seemed like hours, before I stumbled out of bed and started the long process of pushing all of the furniture in the room against the door. Once that was completed I had ripped all of the sheets and blankets off the bed and threw them in a corner along with the loveseats pillows and cushions.

I retreated to my corner and set up a makeshift bed with my back against the wall.

I stayed up the rest of the night scratching my thighs raw.


	6. Chapter 6

Consciousness crept in slowly. My eyes stung as if they had been packed with salt as I slept. Fingers that had longed dried together, peeled apart in a soft sigh. My blood cracking and fluttering to the dirty floor I laid on. Dust piled around me like a mother's arms cradling a crying child. Weakened arms pushed my frail torso away from the dust's embrace and I gazed around the room to find I was alone. Shocked my head whipped back and forth to gaze at every surrounding inch of the room. I was alone.

It was refreshing, and utterly pitiful.

I raised myself to stand and lunged toward the dresser that was pushed against the door. My thighs ached as the scabs split apart and oozed creating trails in the grime covering my legs. I needed to cover myself. That was my one priority, and with a fully rested mind I was able to think much clearer than I had in months. Ivan had showed…enthusiasm in exploring my body. This train of thought cannot be expanded upon. It WILL not. I will not allow it. I have let him restrain and cage me. I will not let him delve into these new "emotions" he has stumbled upon.

With renewed vigor I probed into the drawers, hoping for something to shield myself from scrutinizing eyes. I was rewarded with a pair of cloth pants and an old shirt from much happier days. I slung them on and began the slow torturous action of pulling the dresser and desk away from the door. Time seemed to drag as I did this; the pain in my legs surprised me. I did not think I had injured myself too badly but in this light there was no use telling except my fingers were caked in gore that was for sure. I continued my work and was stunned at how hard this task was for me. Last night it seemed to only take a few short seconds before I was curled in the corner blanketed in whispers and replays of Ivan's actions.

This drew my attention back to _him_.

How was I to fix this?

What were my options?

I could shut him down. Permanently. But all those years….all that hard work would be for nothing. Was I willing to throw away my own chance of the dream I had held onto so tightly? What else is there for me to do? I could try to lower his guard. Comply with him. Allow him his fascination, and when he is weakest I could strike. Severing him of his control. I am his master. Surely that part of him has been retained. It was what I based him on. If anything that would be the very last thing to go. Assuming that it does not work though, I must be ready to unplug him. To destroy what I had created. What I had poured my very life and soul into, because it was rotten. Contaminated to the very core. It was my own fault, and my selfishness cannot allow something so impure to continue to operate. I am willing to swallow my pride in order to make ends meet.

My tongue smoothed over my teeth slowly, my tension getting the best of me until I spot _him_ in what used to be my office. A dull ache in my skull beseeched me to turn around. To camouflage into the shadows. To melt into the chipped paint covering the once spotless walls. But I carried myself forward, my feet skimming the floor slowly to hide the pain each movement drew from me. At long last I was rewarded with the view of his immense back. He was hunched over a small book. The pages bloomed out between his upturned palms, curling softly at the edges as if they were smoke drifting to the heavens. It was almost comical to see such a large _man_ holding something so small and delicate. Only then did I realize his notification program must no longer be functioning as he refused to acknowledge my presence until I drew myself up next to his chair, and once he looked up the eyes which haunted me the night before seemed impossibly wide and round. As if the screws had burst and the sockets snapped open to spill out his carefully crafted orbs. The chains which once were so lively were rusted and cracked. They seemed to barely move as if frozen in place, something was clearly wrong and a twinge tickled my spine as his whole demeanor shifted and morphed before my eyes.

Gears which once were lubricated and fluid were roaring, and in that moment he seemed to engulf me. My breath snaked out of my lungs as scorching cold fingers pressed against my chest, deviating before they rested above my heart. The blood gushed through my ears, almost drowning out the murmur which left Ivan's lips.

"Why do you tempt me?" The voice which was usually sickeningly sweet groaned into my ears. His head quickly found purchase in the hollow between my neck and shoulder which seemed almost impossibly deep. "Tell me why you continue to seduce me..." His words coasted over my flesh, making the hair on my arms stand on end, and with an unsure sigh I saw my chance and I took it.

I urged my body into his, succumbing to the harsh temperature of his skin. My grimace was lost to him who was too bewildered at my close contact to notice. "I want it." The words ghosted out of my mouth on their own which evoked him to gather me closer. "I do not understand." The sentence seemed small and fragile. As if coming from a child who could never understand the weight of the answer they would receive. My assumption was correct when I muttered that I was awake when I was _disturbed_ last night, he seemed taken aback slightly but pressed his weight against me to grind my spine into the wall behind me. I almost gagged as I feel his mouth quirk against my neck and he let out a giggle which soon turned to haughty laughter. "You don't want it." He growled out viciously, roughly grasping my wrists only to twist them behind my back. This caused my cheek to lay flush against the damp wallpaper, violet orbs squinted at me and I leaned against the wall completely revolted at what I had created. He had set a trap and I was dumb enough to jump right into it.

_Keep calm Jones. Play your part. _

I forced down bile and cooed to my captor, grinding back against him as well as I possibly could with my whole upper half shoved against the wall. His hands twitched and his eyebrows knit together in confusion, clearly not expecting my reaction. Taking my chance I looked over my shoulder and whined begging him to turn me around so I could see him better. This order seemed to cause him to falter as he quickly let me go in favor of me pressing my torso against his. Another order quickly spilled from my lips only to be covered by his forceful mouth. I worked quickly and within seconds of my tongue meeting his, I pressed the small clasp behind his ear. This opened and with a twitch of my finger, Ivan's large formed sunk to the floor. Our lips parted from one another's in a wet sigh, and I smirked to see his form unmoving on the floor.

This peace will only last a few minutes as it was just a manual restart. There was no way I could shut him down now, but I saw my chance and thought it would be better to get help rather than to try and numb myself to the inevitable outcome of that situation. I ran as fast as I could, but I felt like I was a part of the matrix. Every movement seemed painstakingly slow as I lurched toward the front door, my touch automatically unlocked it and I slipped knee deep into snow. The cloth of my pants stuck to my dazed skin, the snow completely drenching me and slowing me down even further. I could have cried as I trudged through the snow, begging anyone, anything, to just give me one chance.

Just let me find someone to help.

Let me find somewhere to hide.

Just take me away from here.

Anywhere would be fine.

I don't think I can fix this Hell hole I have created for myself.

Right when I reached the top of the hill, a laugh bubbled up from my throat. A mile away was a small village.

I could get help.

I was saved.

Thank yo-

My face hit the snow harder than a sack of bricks. My nose crunched against the frozen ground beneath the dusting of snow as my fingers dug into the ground for purchase, clawing madly as I gripped anything within range. The blood from my nose caused my shaking hands to slip and slide off of the rocks and dying tree roots which lay hidden beneath the snow.

Please. Please. Please. I chanted in my head as tears pricked my eyes, freezing as they rolled down my flushed cheeks.

"You like the snow, right~? Well let's play in it!" Ivan chirped from behind me, letting go of my legs and allowing me to scramble up to the top of the hill. Within seconds my face once again met snow, as Ivan's large hand pressed down firmly in the middle of my shoulder blades. "I will teach you to run from me Alfred. I will teach you who the real _**master**_ is, and who the _**slave**_ is. I am not your _**thing**_ to order around, I will _**program**__**you**_ to _**know your place**_."


End file.
